Between Strangers (2002)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Edoardo Ponti

Writer:

Edoardo Ponti (written by)

Release Date:

13 September 2002 (Italy)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Three strangers - one secret.

Plot:

Three women confront their pasts which changes their futures.

Plot Keywords:

Toronto | Cellist | Angola | Friend | Beating

Awards:

2 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Sophia Loren	...	Olivia
Mira Sorvino	...	Natalia Bauer
Deborah Kara Unger	...	Catherine
Pete Postlethwaite	...	John
Julian Richings	...	Nigel
Klaus Maria Brandauer	...	Alexander Bauer
Malcolm McDowell	...	Alan Baxter
Len Doncheff	...	Grocery Store Owner
Corey Sevier	...	Jeb
Ngozi Taymah Armatrading	...	Angolan War Child
Dov Tiefenbach	...	Matt
Alex House	...	Kevin
Noam Jenkins	...	Rogelio
Sydney Pearson	...	Little Girl
Andrew Tarbet	...	George

Also Known As:

Coeurs inconnus (Canada: French title)
Cuori estranei (Italy)

MPAA:

Rated R for language.

Runtime:

95 min (Toronto International Film Festival)

Country:

Canada | Italy

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 (DVD rating) | Singapore:PG | Australia:M | Canada:14A | Germany:12 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Equinox Entertainment

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When John first looks at Olivia's charcoal drawings, the light reflecting off the paper shows it to be a smooth, semi-gloss surface. Neither the drawing paper for charcoal nor the medium itself reflects light in this way; these appear to be photographs of charcoal drawings.

Movie Connections:

Featured in O Lucky Malcolm! (2006)

Connection between the leads is too far fetched

This movie was better than expected, well acted and the little dramas were sincere. It's got Deborah Kara Unger AND Mira Sorvino plus many other high caliber actors in small parts. But there's some negatives that keep it from greatness.

The 3 vandals were too disturbing for this kind of film and made me want to twist their necks. No such justice in the movie.

The connection between the three female leads is too far fetched and virtually non-existent. The ending does not make any sense, why are these 3 women waiting at the same table at the airport, they all have different destinations. The little girl makes no sense other than being a poorly constructed plot device to link the three women. Unnecessary too because this story already has a link between them: they're on a crossroad between the past and the present, up to something new in their life.

Also, the photographer accidentally meeting with an Angolian, as was mentioned here before, is WAY too coincidental.

It seems that this kind of storytelling has become popular with Short Cuts and Magnolia, of which the first is by far the best.